Source-based authentication for a license of a license data structure

ABSTRACT

Technology is disclosed herein for source-based authentication for a license of a license data structure. In at least one implementation, program instructions stored on one or more computer readable storage media, when executed by a processing system, direct the processing system to at least, responsive to a launch of an application, obtain a license file for the application, the license file comprising a user license. The processing system is further directed to determine authentication of the user license based on a source of the license file and, if the user license is authenticated, enable features of the application based on the user license and initiate presentation of the application in accordance with the enabled features.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This patent application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/454,423, filed on Mar. 9, 2017, entitled“SOURCE-BASED AUTHENTICATION FOR A LICENSE OF A LICENSE DATA STRUCTURE;”and hereby incorporated by reference into this patent application.

TECHNICAL BACKGROUND

Software products such as operating systems and application programsoften contain materials that are protected under copyright law, whichgrants the author of a piece of original work (e.g., software code)exclusive rights over the usage and distribution of the work. To obtaina copy of a software product from a vendor who owns rights to thatsoftware product, a user typically enters into a license agreement withthe vendor, which governs how the user may use and/or distribute thesoftware product. For example, the license agreement may restrict thenumber of times a user can install the software and/or the number ofcomputers on which the software can be installed.

An “activation” process is often completed when an attempt is made toinstall a copy of a software product. This process may be designed todetermine whether the copy is authorized for installation (e.g., whetherthe copy was legitimately purchased by the user) and/or whether theinstallation is in compliance with one or more applicable licenseagreements (e.g., whether the user has exceeded a maximum number ofpermitted installations). Some conventional software activationtechniques use a “product key,” which is a piece of information madeavailable to a user when the user legitimately purchases or otherwiselegitimately obtains a copy of a software product.

The product key is typically tied to a single edition of software. Forexample, where a software product is offered in multiple editions (e.g.,professional and home editions), the product key allows the user toinstall only the edition unlocked by the product key. During theactivation process, the user provides the product key, which whenaccepted or validated, gives the user permission to complete theinstallation. Thus, the copy of the software product acquired by theuser is installed on the user's computer. However, if the product keydoes not match the copy of the software product acquired by the user,then the installation is not allowed to continue, and the user mustacquire the appropriate edition of software that matches the product keyin order to complete the installation properly.

Each edition of the software product, which is enabled by acorresponding product key, has a separate installation program offeringdifferent sets of features within the installed program. Thus, a home ormore basic edition of a software product that has a different set offeatures in its installed program than a professional or more advancededition of the software product will correspondingly have a differentinstallation program than the professional edition. Some of the featuresbetween the editions may overlap, but others may only be offered intheir respective edition. To offer a third edition offering yet anotherdistinct set of features than those offered by the home or professionaleditions, a third installation program is required to install theappropriate features. Accordingly, under such a scenario, even a slightchange in the number of offered features in one edition versus anothercauses a new product key/installation program pair to be created.

Overview

Examples discussed herein relate to activation of a set or subset offeatures of a full feature set of a software product installed without aproduct key when the software product is launched. In an implementation,a computing apparatus comprises one or more computer readable storagemedia, a processing system operatively coupled with the one or morecomputer readable storage media, and program instructions stored on theone or more computer readable storage media for authenticating a userlicense for an application after the application has launched. Whenexecuted by the processing system, the program instructions direct theprocessing system to at least, responsive to a launch of theapplication, obtain a license file for the application, the license filecomprising a user license. The processing system is further directed todetermine authentication of the user license based on a source of thelicense file and, if the user license is authenticated, enable featuresof the application based on the user license and initiate presentationof the application in accordance with the enabled features.

In another implementation, a method for authenticating a user licensefor an application after the application has launched comprises,responsive to a launch of the application, obtaining a license file forthe application, the license file comprising a user license. The methodalso includes determining authentication of the user license based on asource of the license file. If the user license is authenticated, themethod includes enabling features of the application based on the userlicense and initiating presentation of the application in accordancewith the enabled features.

In another implementation, one or more computer readable storage mediahaving program instructions stored thereon for authenticating a userlicense for an application after the application has launched, whereinthe program instructions, when executed by a processing system, directthe processing system to at least obtain, from a source location, alicense file comprising a user license for an application responsive toa launch of the application. The program system is also directed toauthenticate the user license based on the source location, enablefeatures of the application based on the user license, and initiatepresentation of the application in accordance with the enabled features.

This Overview is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. It may be understood that this Overview is not intended toidentify key features or essential features of the claimed subjectmatter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimedsubject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to describe the manner in which the above-recited and otheradvantages and features can be obtained, a more particular descriptionis set forth and will be rendered by reference to specific examplesthereof which are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understandingthat these drawings depict only typical examples and are not thereforeto be considered to be limiting of its scope, implementations will bedescribed and explained with additional specificity and detail throughthe use of the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a system for launching anapplication without a product key and requesting license informationtherefor according to some embodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a license file according to anembodiment.

FIG. 3 is a process flow diagram of a method for activating features ofan application each time the application is launched according to anembodiment.

FIG. 4 is a process flow diagram of a method for activating features ofan application each time the application is launched according toanother embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram for the authentication of a licensefile according to an embodiment.

FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic diagram of a system for requesting andreceiving a license file with a trusted timestamp according to anembodiment.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a license file according to anotherembodiment.

FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram for the authentication of a licensefile when the license file is cached on a local device according to anembodiment.

FIG. 9 illustrates a schematic diagram for combining multiple licensesaccording to an embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a process flow diagram for combining features from multiplelicenses into a single feature list according to an embodiment.

FIG. 11 illustrates an embodiment of a license file according to anotherembodiment.

FIG. 12 illustrates a computing system suitable for implementing thesoftware technology disclosed herein, including any of the applications,architectures, elements, processes, and operational scenarios andsequences illustrated in the Figures and discussed below in the DetailedDescription.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Examples are discussed in detail below. While specific implementationsare discussed, it should be understood that this is done forillustration purposes only. A person skilled in the relevant art willrecognize that other components and configurations may be used withoutparting from the spirit and scope of the subject matter of thisdisclosure. The implementations may be a machine-implemented method, acomputing device, or a computer readable medium.

Embodiments disclosed herein set forth methods and systems forapplication licensing according to various criteria and techniques. Asused herein, the term “application” may refer to an application,program, or service implemented within a computing environment.Applications that may be utilized in accordance with the licensingservice described herein include, but are not limited to, MICROSOFTWORD, MICROSOFT EXCEL, MICROSOFT POWERPOINT, MICROSOFT VISIO, orMICROSOFT OUTLOOK, all of which are available from Microsoft Corporationof Redmond, Wash. Applications may be provided to a computing device bya marketplace service, or any of a number of third party services, via anetwork. Various different types of licenses, or entitlements, for suchapplications can be obtained through a variety of different methods.

References to the licensing service herein refers to any location orsource of the license file(s) provided to an application requesting alicense. In one example, the licensing service resides on a separate orremote system and includes the license file source when referring to thelicensing service herein. An example of such a remote licensing servicemay be referred to as the “Office Licensing Service” or “OLS” since itmay be used to license MICROSOFT OFFICE, i.e., “Office” applicationsavailable from Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash., such as the oneslisted above. However, it is to be understood that the licensing servicemay also be used to license any other suitable types of applicationsavailable from any number of providers. In another example, the sameoperating system running the application may include a built-in sourceof licenses from which the license file is acquired. A license store inthe operating system may thus be the license file source when referringto the licensing service herein.

Application licensing described herein solves the problems discussedabove with respect to the use of separate installations of applicationbinaries by providing activation of a full installation of applicationhaving all the features available but selectable using a license datastructure rather than a product key.

Techniques are described that allow an application, which contains afull set of features and functions, to activate a set or subset of thefull feature set based on a license data structure contained within alicense file. In an implementation, after launch of the application, theapplication evaluates the license data structure of the user's licenseto determine the features available to the user. In addition, thelocation of the license data structure enables different licensing to beavailable to the application. In addition, the license data structurecan be backed by a trusted timestamp to allow use of the applicationeven if communication with the licensing service is unavailable. Inaddition, the license data structure enables combining multiple userlicenses into a single license that allows a superset of applicationsfeatures to be available to the user based on licenses approved for theuser. The license data structure also allows features of the program tobe available to the user beyond the features provided by the licensepurchased by the user.

A technical effect provided by the techniques disclosed herein is theability of a software program to determine, after its launch, whichfeatures thereof a user is allowed to access based on the license theuser is entitled to. While the software program may include everyfeature able to be made available to users, a particular user licensemay permit user access to less than all of the available features. Onlythe features permitted for the user based on the license are allowed,while the remaining features are disabled and/or hidden.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a system 100 for launching anapplication without a product key and requesting license informationtherefor according to some embodiments. System 100 includes a device 102having an application 104 installed thereon. Application 104 representsan application offering various allowable features to users based on thetype of license available to the user. As used herein, “features” of theapplication refer to features, services, modes, options, and otheraspects of the application that are enabled or disabled based on thelicensing permissions available to the user. Through a variety oflicense options available for purchase or acquisition by the user, thenumber of allowable features available when the application is launchedmay range from zero available features to the complete list of allowablefeatures and to any number of feature combinations therebetween. Forexample, in an application offering four available features—A, B, C, andD—for activation through respective license purchasing, a first licensemight make feature A available while another license might make featuresA and C available. Yet another license might make all features andservices A, B, C, and D available. The different licenses may beacquired based on editions of the application purchasable through avendor. Editions of the application may relate to, for example, a Basicedition, a Home edition, a Student edition, a Professional edition, andthe like. Thus, while the application binaries of application 104 do notchange, the user experience provided by one license or another doeschange.

To determine the license available to the user, the application 104acquires a license file 106 and uses the license file 106 to activatethe allowable application features for the user corresponding to thelicense. In the scenario illustrated in FIG. 1, application 104, viadevice 102, creates and sends a license request 108 to a server 110housing a licensing service 112 such as an OLS. The license request 108includes the information necessary for the licensing service 112 todetermine the appropriate license file 106 to send to device 102 inresponse to the license request 108. The information in the licenserequest 108 may include, for example, user information, time-basedinformation, hardware-based information, location information, operatingsystem (OS) information, etc. The user information may include theidentification (ID) or username of the user registered to the user'slicense. The time-based information may include the time and/or datethat the application 104 was launched or that the license request 108was generated. Hardware-based information may include hardware IDs ofone or more components and/or any service IDs that are available withindevice 102. The location information may include the physical locationof device 102, and the OS information may include an identifier of theOS installed on the device 102.

Based on the received license file 106, application 104 enables and/ordisables features available to the user. FIG. 2 illustrates anembodiment of license file 106 according to an embodiment. The licensefile 106 includes a license data structure 200 defining a user license202, a signature 204, and a public key 206. License 202 may specify theuser ID of the user associated with the license and includes the list offeatures enabled by the license. The list of features may include theapplications pertaining to the license and any individual featureswithin the applications that are enabled. The signature 204 and publickey 206 are included to provide authentication of the license file 106and to prove that the license file 106 comes from the appropriateauthority using techniques known in the art.

FIG. 3 is a process flow diagram of a method 300 for activating featuresof an application each time the application is launched according to anembodiment. The method 300 begins at block 302 with the launch of theapplication. The application may be launched or otherwise engaged in avariety of ways. For example, the application may be launched inresponse to a user input or command, such as a touch, click, or gestureindicative of a desire to engage with the application. The applicationincludes features available to users based on a number of differentlicenses, and the features to be enabled are not known at launch but aredetermined via inspection and analysis of the license file available tothe user. At block 304, the application generates a license request tobe sent to a licensing service for determining the features to beenabled or disabled. Generation of the license request includes, in oneexample, determining the user ID of any user or of users who havepreviously used the application based on cached licenses from previouslaunches. In another example, the user ID may be determined bypresenting the user with an option to enter his or her username and/orID. In another example, the user ID may be determined from the activeuser account of the operating system from which the application waslaunched. In yet another example, the user ID may be determined fromanother application currently running on the system and for which theuser is already currently licensed. The other application may be, forexample, another application from a suite of related applications suchas MICROSOFT OFFICE applications. In addition to getting the user ID,other time-, hardware-, location-, and OS-based information may begathered as discussed above. The application generates the licenserequest from the gathered information and, at block 306, sends thelicense request to the licensing service.

The application receives the license file from the licensing service atblock 308, and at block 310, authenticates the license file at least inpart based on the signature and public key included in the license datastructure of the license file. The application analyzes the licenseincluded in the license data structure and appropriately enables ordisables the allowable features based on the feature list of the licenseat block 312. The user is then presented with the application at block314 having the appropriate features enabled according to the user'slicense.

Embodiments of the invention allow different licensing to be availableto the application based on the location or source of the license datastructure containing the user's license, which may be determined basedon the location or source of the license file. When the licensingservice is online or otherwise in communication with the application,the application may treat the licensing service as the default locationfrom which to obtain the user's license. However, if the licensingservice is not available to receive the licensing request or to send thelicense back to the application, the application may be programmed tolook for substitute licenses in additional locations in order to allowthe user to use the application.

FIG. 4 is a process flow diagram of a method 400 for activating featuresof an application each time the application is launched according toanother embodiment. The method 400 begins at blocks 402 and 404 with,respectively, the launch of the application and the generation of alicense request in the same or similar manner as described above withrespect to blocks 302, 304 of method 300. At block 406, method 400checks to see whether the licensing service is available. If thelicensing service is available to return a license file (408), blocks410 and 412 respectively send the license request to the licensingservice and receive the license file therefrom as described above withrespect to blocks 306, 308 of method 300.

If the licensing service is not available or cannot return a licensefile to the application (414), method 400 begins checking one or moreadditional locations accessible thereto to try to find and locate avalid and usable license file. In one embodiment, if the licensingservice is not available, the application begins searching for thelicensing file in one or more networked file or storage locationsaccessible to the application at block 416. If the license file is foundon the network (418), it is retrieved at block 420 for further analysisas described below. However, if the license file is not found on thenetwork (422), local or non-networked storage locations may be checkedat block 424 to see if the license file can be found. If a local licensefile is found (426), it is retrieved at block 428 for further analysisas described below. While not illustrated in FIG. 4, additionallocations other than the network and local locations discussed above maybe additionally or alternatively checked in order to try to find thevalid and usable license file. If no local licensing file is found or ifthe file cannot be found anywhere accessible by the application (430),method 400 may disable the application at block 432 and prevent the userfrom accessing any of the features thereof.

The locations of where to search either on the network or on the localmachine for the license file may be set, for example, via Group Policy,command strings, or from user inputs during installation of theapplication. In one example, information technology (IT) personnel of acompany may set the network search locations based on default licensefile storage locations on a company's server during installation of theapplication on the company's non-server computer. Additional localstorage locations may be further input in case the user is not connectedto the company's network when the application is launched. In addition,the application may include default local storage search locations suchthat, if they are set up and exist on the local machine, they can bechecked for valid license files in the searching process. For example,the application may set up a default cache storage location to save andstore valid licenses received from the licensing service each time thevalid license is received.

The search order for obtaining the licensing file may also be varieddepending on the application or specified options during installation ofthe application. For example, while method 400 illustrates attempting toobtain the license file from the licensing service (406) followed by thenetworked location (416) followed by the local location (424),embodiments of the invention may include varying the order of thesesearching locations.

Based on the location from where the license file was received orretrieved, the application may authenticate the user license differentlyat block 434. Referring to FIG. 5, a process flow diagram of procedure434 for the authentication of the user license is shown forauthenticating the license file. At block 500, if the license file wasreceived from the licensing service (502), authentication of the userlicense may proceed as described above with respect to block 310. Thatis, the public key and the signature contained within the license filemay be authenticated and validated as coming from the licensing serviceat block 504. At block 506, if the license file was found on the network(508), the license file may contain a signature and a public keypertaining to the company that, together, allow the user license to beauthenticated and validated at block 510 even though the license filedid not come from the licensing service. At block 512, if the licensefile was locally found (514), it could also contain the signature andpublic key of the company that would allow the user license to beauthenticated and validated at block 516. Alternatively, the locallicense file may be built into the application itself and may beauthenticated and validated using a public key of the application'screator. In this case, the local license file may allow the user to usea more-basic edition of the application than what would be available tothe user when a non-built-in license file is used.

Referring back to FIG. 4, the user license is checked at block 436 tosee whether it is authenticated and validated in block 434. If so (438),it is analyzed and inspected to appropriately enable or disable theallowable application features based on the feature list of the userlicense at block 440. The user is then presented with the application atblock 442 having the appropriate features enabled according to theuser's license. If the user license is not authenticated in block 434(444), method 400 may disable the application at block 432 and preventthe user from accessing any of the features thereof.

Embodiments of the invention allow the license data structure to bebacked by a trusted timestamp to allow use of the application even ifcommunication with the licensing service is unavailable. The public keyof the license file (e.g., public key 206 of license 202 of FIG. 2)periodically expires after a time period of validity. A valid public keyis included in the license file each time the license file is receivedfrom the licensing service. As long as the license file can be receivedfrom the licensing service, the public key gets continually orperiodically updated such that its period of validity remains active fora time. For example, the received public key may include a time periodof validity of one day, one week, one month, or another time interval.This time interval can get reset with the receipt of new public keys inthe license file from the licensing service. However, in the case whereonly the local licensing file from the cache location is available forretrieval (block 428 of FIG. 4), the situation might occur where theuser is entitled to a perpetual license of the application or to atleast a license of a longer period than the validity period of thepublic key included in the cached license file. For example, it may bethat the cached public key has expired before the application is able toconnect and communicate with the licensing service. If the applicationdoes not have a way to authenticate the license file beyond the timeperiod of validity of the public key, then the user may be preventedfrom using the application even though the user's license would allowfurther usage.

Therefore, FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic diagram of a system 600 forrequesting and receiving a license file 602 with a trusted timestampaccording to some embodiments. System 600 includes the components ofsystem 100 with additional components for updating or converting thelicense file 106 of FIG. 1 to license file 602 that includes the trustedand signed timestamp.

After generating the license file 106 illustrated in FIG. 2, licensingservice 112 of system 600 creates a hash 604 of the license datastructure 200 and sends the hash 604 to a timestamping authority 606 ona third-party server 608. Referring as well to FIG. 7, timestampingauthority 606 adds a timestamp 610 to hash 604 and calculates anotherhash from the result, which is then digitally signed with a private keyof the timestamping authority 606 to create a signed hash 612. Thesigned hash 612, timestamp, and a public key 614 of the timestampingauthority (TA) 606 are sent as a trusted timestamp package 616 back tothe licensing service 112. Licensing service 112 appends the trustedtimestamp package 616 to the license file 106 originally created andsends the modified license file license file 602 to device 102 forprocessing by application 104.

FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram of procedure 434 for the authenticationof the license file when the license file is cached on the local deviceaccording to an embodiment. At block 800, the public key in the licensedata structure of the license filed is analyzed to determine if it isvalid or whether its time of validity has expired. If the public key isstill valid (802), then the license data structure is authenticated theother signature and public key received with the license data structurefrom the licensing service at block 804.

If the public key is no longer valid or has expired (806), that thelicense file is analyzed to determine if it has been signed with atimestamp from a trusted TA at block 808. If there is no signedtimestamp with the license file (810), then the license file is notauthenticated at block 812. If the license file does have a signedtimestamp from the TA (814), a first hash of the license data structureis created at block 816. The first hash is combined with or appendedwith the timestamp from the trusted timestamp package at block 818 tocreate a second hash.

The TA public key is used at block 820 to create TA hash from theTA-signed hash. The TA hash is compared with the second hash at block822 to see if they match. If so (824), the license data structure isauthenticated at block 826 even though the public key from the licensingauthority is expired or invalid since the signed timestamp proves that,at the time of receiving the cached license file, the license was signedby a valid public key verified by the timestamp. If the TA hash does notmatch the second hash (828), then the license file is not authenticatedat block 812.

Embodiments of the invention further enable combining multiple userlicenses into a single license that allows a superset of applicationsfeatures to be available to the user based on licenses approved for theuser. As discussed above in FIG. 3, the license request sent to thelicensing service may include the user ID of the user launching theapplication. The user ID may be determined from a number of differentsources including, for example, one or more users who have previouslyused the application identified by their user ID, an entered usernameand/or ID input by a user defining the user ID via a user input, theactive user account of the operating system from which the applicationwas launched, and from another application currently running on thesystem and for which the user is already currently licensed. While thelicense request may choose between one of the sources to identify theuser, the user may, in fact, however, be entitled to two or moredifferent licenses depending on which user ID the user chooses to use.For example, under a first username or user ID, the user may havepurchased a Home edition or version of the application to use forpersonal or other reasons on a computer at home. The user may also beable to use a different edition or version of the application such as aProfessional edition under a different username or user ID provided byhis workplace, for example.

Referring to FIG. 9, in an example scenario, the user's employer mayrequire use of the license of the Professional edition 900 of theapplication as it contains features enabled for the user to perform hiswork duties (e.g., Features 1, 2, 3, and 5). However, the user may alsoprefer to use the benefit of an additional or other feature or featuresof the application not available in the Professional edition but insteadavailable in a different edition of the same application (e.g., Features8 and 9). In this case, the user may acquire the license of thedifferent (e.g., Home) edition 902 in order to use the preferredfeatures. These preferred features, however, may not be required to beavailable to the user all the time that the application is running andmay cause some of the features enabled by the Professional edition to bedisabled. Accordingly, the user may be forced to quit and re-lunch theapplication under the different user IDs whenever the one or otherfeature sets available to the user under the various licenses is desiredto be used.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 9, the application is programmed to present theuser with a unified application experience in which all of the featuresenabled by the user's entitled licenses are made available. Accordingly,at block 304 of method 300, the license request generation includesidentifying all of the user IDs available to the user. That is, thedifferent locations or sources from which the user's ID may beconcatenated or added together and bundled with the license requestbefore sending the license request to the licensing service. As anexample, a separate application such as an email application may berunning as having been previously launched by the user under a firstuser ID. The email application may be a standalone application or may bea web-enabled application running in an Internet browser, for example.Thereafter, the launching of a word processing application causes theapplication to generate the license request has set forth in method 300and order to determine which of its features to enable or disableaccording to the user's license. The word processing application, havingpreviously been used under a license associated with a second user ID ofthe user may identify the second user ID for inclusion in the licenserequest. However, since the email application is running, the wordprocessing application may query the email application to determine theuser ID associated with it. Upon finding that the email application isrunning under the user's first user ID, the first user ID may be addedto the license request together with the second user ID previouslyadded. The word processing application may further continue toinvestigate other sources or locations of user IDs associated with theuser such that if any additional user IDs are found, they may be addedto the license request.

In the example scenario illustrated in FIG. 9, the application maydetermine that the user IDs previously used were user ID #1 and user ID#2. Accordingly, the application may append user ID #1 and user ID #2together when sending the license request to the licensing service perblock 306.

FIG. 10 is a process flow diagram of a method 1000 for combiningfeatures from multiple licenses into a single feature list according toan embodiment. The licensing service, upon receipt of a license requestat block 1002, identifies each user ID in the license request at block1004, which may include multiple user IDs. For each user ID identified,method 1000 performs the steps associated with an iteration block 1006.Block 1006 includes verifying that a valid license exists for the userID of the current iteration at block 1008. If a valid license exists forthe user ID exists (1010), the user ID is checked to see whether it isassociated with multiple licenses at block 1012. For each licenseassociated with the user ID, method 1000 performs the steps associatedwith an iteration block 1014.

In iteration block 1014, the application features licensed to the userID are identified at block 1016. In block 1018, a license is eithercreated based on the licensed application features or is appended to inthe case that a license was previously created at block 1016. If, atblock 1020, additional licenses are associated with thecurrently-iterated user ID (1022), iteration block 1014 repeats at block1016 using the next associated license.

If no additional licenses are associated with the currently-iterateduser ID (1024), iteration block 1006 determines, at block 1026, whetheradditional user IDs were identified in the license request at block1004. If additional user IDs were identified (1028), iteration block1006 repeats at block 1008 using the next user ID. If thecurrently-iterated user ID is not found to be valid (1030) at block 1008and if no additional user IDs are identified for further processing(1032) as determined by block 1026, the processed license file with thecreated/appended license with enabled application features in thelicense data structure is sent back to the requesting application atblock 1034.

Referring back to FIG. 9, for the valid licenses identified, a single,combined edition license 904 of combined features is created for sendingback to the application as part of the license data structure. Thus, theoverlapping features enabled by the Professional edition 900 and theHome edition 902 are enabled in the combined edition license 904. Inthis manner, features 1, 2, 3, and 5 of the Professional edition 900 areORed or combined with features 1, 2, 4, 8, and 9 of the Home edition 902to create the aggregated enabled feature list of features 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,8, and 9 of the combined edition license 904. That is, for each featureavailable in any of the licenses valid for the user, if the feature isenabled in any of the licenses, it is enabled in the combined editionlicense 904. Features such as features 4, 6, and 7 that are disabled ineach of the licenses to which the user is entitled are likewise notenabled in the combined edition license 904.

While the combined edition license 904 is illustrated as a concatenatedlicense generated from multiple licenses available to the user underdistinct user IDs (e.g., user ID #1 and user ID #2), embodiments of theinvention contemplate multiple licenses being available to the userunder a single user ID. That is, the licensing service may include twoor more licenses associated with the single user ID and generate asingle, combined edition license 904 therefrom.

As discussed above in FIG. 1, the location information in the licenserequest may include the physical location of device 102. The locationinformation may be used in embodiments of the invention to allowfeatures of the program to be available to the user beyond the featuresprovided by the license purchased by the user. Referring to FIG. 3, theapplication is programmed to identify the user's location and to includethe location in the license request generation. Accordingly, at block304 of method 300, the license request generation includes identifyingthe user's location based on the physical location of device 102. In oneembodiment, the physical location of device 102 may be determined basedon the identity of the provider of the network to which the device 102is connected. The network may be wired or wireless. In one embodiment,the provider may be identified by the name of its network service setidentifier name (or SSID name) if there is one associated with thenetwork. In another embodiment, the provider may be determined by theInternet Protocol (“IP”) address of its Internet service. Accordingly,the application may identify either or both of the SSID name and the IPaddress of the provider's network and bundle them in the generatedlicense request before sending the license request to the licensingservice.

The licensing service, upon receipt of a license request including oneor more location fields specifying the provider of the network servicesto which the device 102 is connected, verifies that the provider has aprovider ID registered with the licensing service that is configured toenable additional features of the application. If a valid provider ID isfound, the license data structure returns to the device 102 includes alicense providing a first set of enabled features based on the user's IDand one or more additional sets of enabled features based on theprovider's ID. Alternatively, a combined set of user/provider featuresmay be provided.

FIG. 11 illustrates an embodiment of license file 106 according to anembodiment incorporating enabled features based on the provider ID. Thelicense file 106 includes a license data structure 1100 defining alicense 1102, a licensing authority signature 1104, and a licensingauthority public key 1106. License 1102 includes a user license 1108enabling a set of features 1110 for the application based on the licenseentitled to the user based on the user's ID. License 1102 also includesa provider license 1112 enabling a set of features 1114 for theapplication based on the license entitled to the provider of the user'snetwork connection based on the provider's ID.

A provider may, for example, offer an Internet connection to itscustomers in order to promote patronage and purchase of the provider'sgoods and services. Providers such as café s, restaurants, and othertypes of stores and service providers may offer such a service. Thefeatures 1114 enabled by the provider's license 1112 offer additionalapplication functionality beyond the functionality enabled by the user'slicense 1108. For example, the provider's features 1114 may includeunique icons or fonts for use in documents and chat messages on device110 during patronage of the provider. Macros, formulas, and add-insunique to the provider may also be provided that are designed to benefitthe user. For example, the provider may make an ordering feature enabledwhen connected to its network that allows the user to order goods andservices from that provider location from within the application eventhough the application is not a typical provider ordering application.The features 1114 may be made available and executable via buttons,menus, checkboxes, dialog boxes, and other known objects for receivinguser input and performing computer functions.

To enable providing the provider license 1112 to its patrons from thelicensing service, the features that the provider wants to be enabledmust be programmed into the application by the application creator, andthe provider must procure licensing therefrom and registration with thelicensing service. Thus, whenever a user is connected to the provider'snetwork, provider license 1112 can be included in the license datastructure 1100. Whenever the user is not connected to the provider'snetwork, provider license 1112 is not included in the license datastructure 1100, and features 1114 are not available to the user. In thiscase, the licensing service may return license 106 as discussed withrespect to FIG. 2 back to device 102.

The features 1114 enabled by the provider's license 1112 may not includea full list of features that the provider intends to provide but mayinclude a feature that defines additional provider features from alocation other than from the license 1102. For example, an enabledprovider feature 1114 may include instructions that cause a menu to begenerated from a list of features located at an Internet locationparticular to the provider or located at a location accessible via theprovider's network. In this case, the application feature may beprogrammed to look up the list of features found at the Internetlocation and dynamically create a menu or other programmable objectstherefrom based on whatever features are located at the Internetlocation. Accordingly, the provider may be able to dynamically changethe list of features available to its patrons through the Internetlookup without requiring that the application be reprogrammedaccordingly.

FIG. 12 illustrates a computing system 1200, which is representative ofany system or collection of systems in which the various applications,services, scenarios, and processes disclosed herein may be implemented.Examples of computing system 1200 include, but are not limited to,desktop computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, computers havinghybrid form-factors, mobile phones, smart televisions, wearable devices,server computers, blade servers, rack servers, and any other type ofcomputing system (or collection thereof) suitable for carrying out theapplication launching operations described herein. Such systems mayemploy one or more virtual machines, containers, or any other type ofvirtual computing resource in the context of supporting enhanced groupcollaboration.

Computing system 1200 may be implemented as a single apparatus, system,or device or may be implemented in a distributed manner as multipleapparatuses, systems, or devices. Computing system 1200 includes, but isnot limited to, processing system 1202, storage system 1204, software1206, communication interface system 1208, and user interface system1210. Processing system 1202 is operatively coupled with storage system1204, communication interface system 1208, and user interface system1210.

Processing system 1202 loads and executes software 1206 from storagesystem 1204. Software 1206 includes application 1212, which isrepresentative of the software applications discussed with respect tothe preceding FIGS. 1-11, including application 104. When executed byprocessing system 1202 to launch the application and request and receiveuser licenses, application 1212 directs processing system 1202 tooperate as described herein for at least the various processes,operational scenarios, and sequences discussed in the foregoingimplementations. Computing system 1200 may optionally include additionaldevices, features, or functionality not discussed for purposes ofbrevity.

Referring still to FIG. 12, processing system 1202 may comprise amicro-processor and other circuitry that retrieves and executes software1206 from storage system 1204. Processing system 1202 may be implementedwithin a single processing device, but may also be distributed acrossmultiple processing devices or sub-systems that cooperate in executingprogram instructions. Examples of processing system 1202 include generalpurpose central processing units, application specific processors, andlogic devices, as well as any other type of processing device,combinations, or variations thereof.

Storage system 1204 may comprise any computer readable storage mediareadable by processing system 1202 and capable of storing software 1206.Storage system 1204 may include volatile and nonvolatile, removable andnon-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storageof information, such as computer readable instructions, data structures,program modules, or other data. Examples of storage media include randomaccess memory, read only memory, magnetic disks, optical disks, flashmemory, virtual memory and non-virtual memory, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other suitable storage media. In no case is the computer readablestorage media a propagated signal.

In addition to computer readable storage media, in some implementations,storage system 1204 may also include computer readable communicationmedia over which at least some of software 1206 may be communicatedinternally or externally. Storage system 1204 may be implemented as asingle storage device, but may also be implemented across multiplestorage devices or sub-systems co-located or distributed relative toeach other. Storage system 1204 may comprise additional elements, suchas a controller, capable of communicating with processing system 1202 orpossibly other systems.

Software 1206 in general, and application 1212 in particular, may beimplemented in program instructions and among other functions may, whenexecuted by processing system 1202, direct processing system 1202 tooperate as described with respect to the various operational scenarios,sequences, and processes illustrated herein. For example, application1212 may include program instructions for implementing featureactivation in a launched application, such as methods 300, 400, and1000.

In particular, the program instructions may include various componentsor modules that cooperate or otherwise interact to carry out the variousprocesses and operational scenarios described herein. The variouscomponents or modules may be embodied in compiled or interpretedinstructions, or in some other variation or combination of instructions.Software 1206 may include additional processes, programs, or components,such as operating system software, virtual machine software, or otherapplication software, in addition to or that include application 1212.Software 1206 may also comprise firmware or some other form ofmachine-readable processing instructions executable by processing system1202.

In general, application 1212 may, when loaded into processing system1202 and executed, transform a suitable apparatus, system, or device (ofwhich computing system 1200 is representative) overall from ageneral-purpose computing system into a special-purpose computing systemcustomized to enhance entity classification operations. Indeed, encodingapplication 1212 on storage system 1204 may transform the physicalstructure of storage system 1204. The specific transformation of thephysical structure may depend on various factors in differentimplementations of this description. Examples of such factors mayinclude, but are not limited to, the technology used to implement thestorage media of storage system 1204 and whether the computer-storagemedia are characterized as primary or secondary storage, as well asother factors.

For example, if the computer readable storage media are implemented assemiconductor-based memory, application 1212 may transform the physicalstate of the semiconductor memory when the program instructions areencoded therein, such as by transforming the state of transistors,capacitors, or other discrete circuit elements constituting thesemiconductor memory. A similar transformation may occur with respect tomagnetic or optical media. Other transformations of physical media arepossible without departing from the scope of the present description,with the foregoing examples provided only to facilitate the presentdiscussion.

Communication interface system 1208 may include communicationconnections and devices that allow for communication with othercomputing systems (not shown) over communication networks (not shown).Examples of connections and devices that together allow for inter-systemcommunication may include network interface cards, antennas, poweramplifiers, RF circuitry, transceivers, and other communicationcircuitry. The connections and devices may communicate overcommunication media to exchange communications with other computingsystems or networks of systems, such as metal, glass, air, or any othersuitable communication media. The aforementioned media, connections, anddevices are well known and need not be discussed at length here.

User interface system 1210 may include a keyboard, a mouse, a voiceinput device, a touch input device for receiving a touch gesture from auser, a motion input device for detecting non-touch gestures and othermotions by a user, and other comparable input devices and associatedprocessing elements capable of receiving user input from a user. Outputdevices such as a display, speakers, haptic devices, and other types ofoutput devices may also be included in user interface system 1210. Insome cases, the input and output devices may be combined in a singledevice, such as a display capable of displaying images and receivingtouch gestures. The aforementioned user input and output devices arewell known in the art and need not be discussed at length here.

User interface system 1210 may also include associated user interfacesoftware executable by processing system 1202 in support of the varioususer input and output devices discussed above. Separately or inconjunction with each other and other hardware and software elements,the user interface software and user interface devices may support agraphical user interface, a natural user interface, or any other type ofuser interface, in which a user interface to an application may bepresented (e.g., user interface 102).

Communication between computing system 1200 and other computing systems(not shown), may occur over a communication network or networks and inaccordance with various communication protocols, combinations ofprotocols, or variations thereof. Examples include intranets, internets,the Internet, local area networks, wide area networks, wirelessnetworks, wired networks, virtual networks, software defined networks,data center buses, computing backplanes, or any other type of network,combination of network, or variation thereof. The aforementionedcommunication networks and protocols are well-known and need not bediscussed at length here. In any of the aforementioned examples in whichdata, content, or any other type of information is exchanged, theexchange of information may occur in accordance with any of a variety ofwell-known data transfer protocols.

Certain inventive aspects may be appreciated from the foregoingdisclosure, of which the following are various examples.

Example 1

A computing apparatus comprising: one or more computer readable storagemedia; a processing system operatively coupled with the one or morecomputer readable storage media; and program instructions stored on theone or more computer readable storage media for authenticating a userlicense for an application after the application has launched that, whenexecuted by the processing system, direct the processing system to atleast: responsive to a launch of the application, obtain a license filefor the application, the license file comprising a user license;determine authentication of the user license based on a source of thelicense file; and if the user license is authenticated: enable featuresof the application based on the user license; and initiate presentationof the application in accordance with the enabled features.

Example 2

The computing apparatus of Example 1 wherein, to obtain a license filefor the application, the program instructions direct the processingsystem to: attempt communication with an online licensing service andreceive the license file from the online licensing service if thecommunication is available; and if the communication is not available,retrieve the license file from a network storage location.

Example 3

The computing apparatus of Examples 1-2 wherein, to determineauthentication of the user license based on a source of the licensefile, the program instructions direct the processing system to:determine if the user license is authenticated based on a public key ofthe online licensing service if the license file is received from theonline licensing service; and determine if the user license isauthenticated based on a public key of an entity other than the onlinelicensing service hosting the network storage location if the licensefile is received from the network storage location.

Example 4

The computing apparatus of Examples 1-3 wherein, to obtain a licensefile for the application, the program instructions direct the processingsystem to: attempt communication with an online licensing service andreceive the license file from the online licensing service if thecommunication is available; and if the communication is not available,attempt retrieval of the license file from a network storage locationand retrieve the license file from the network storage location if thelicense file is found in the network storage location; and if thelicense file is not found in the network storage location, retrieve thelicense file from a local storage location.

Example 5

The computing apparatus of Examples 1-4 wherein, to determineauthentication of the user license based on a source of the licensefile, the program instructions direct the processing system to determineif the user license is authenticated based on a public key contained inapplication binaries of the application.

Example 6

The computing apparatus of Examples 1-5 wherein the license file furthercomprises a license data structure comprising: the user license; asignature; and a public key associated with the signature.

Example 7

The computing apparatus of Examples 1-6 wherein the program instructionsfurther direct the processing system to disable the application if theuser license is not authenticated.

Example 8

A method for authenticating a user license for an application after theapplication has launched comprising: responsive to a launch of theapplication, obtaining a license file for the application, the licensefile comprising a user license; determining authentication of the userlicense based on a source of the license file; and if the user licenseis authenticated: enabling features of the application based on the userlicense; and initiating presentation of the application in accordancewith the enabled features.

Example 9

The method of Example 8 wherein obtaining a license file for theapplication comprises: attempting communication with an online licensingservice and receiving the license file from the online licensing serviceif the communication is available; and if the communication is notavailable, retrieving the license file from a network storage location.

Example 10

The method of Examples 8-9 wherein determining authentication of theuser license based on a source of the license file comprises:determining if the user license is authenticated based on a public keyof the online licensing service if the license file is received from theonline licensing service; and determining if the user license isauthenticated based on a public key of an entity other than the onlinelicensing service hosting the network storage location if the licensefile is received from the network storage location.

Example 11

The method of Examples 8-10 wherein obtaining a license file for theapplication comprises: attempting communication with an online licensingservice and receiving the license file from the online licensing serviceif the communication is available; and if the communication is notavailable, attempting retrieval of the license file from a networkstorage location and retrieving the license file from the networkstorage location if the license file is found in the network storagelocation; and if the license file is not found in the network storagelocation, retrieving the license file from a local storage location.

Example 12

The method of Examples 8-11 wherein determining authentication of theuser license based on a source of the license file comprises determiningif the user license is authenticated based on a public key contained inapplication binaries of the application.

Example 13

The method of Examples 8-12 wherein the license file further comprises alicense data structure comprising: the user license; a signature; and apublic key associated with the signature.

Example 14

The method of Examples 8-13 further comprising disabling the applicationif the user license is not authenticated.

Example 15

One or more computer readable storage media having program instructionsstored thereon for authenticating a user license for an applicationafter the application has launched, wherein the program instructions,when executed by a processing system, direct the processing system to atleast: obtain, from a source location, a license file comprising a userlicense for an application responsive to a launch of the application;authenticate the user license based on the source location; enablefeatures of the application based on the user license; and initiatepresentation of the application in accordance with the enabled features.

Example 16

The one or more computer readable storage media of Example 15 wherein,to obtain a license file for the application, the program instructionsdirect the processing system to: attempt communication with an onlinelicensing service and receive the license file from the online licensingservice if the communication is available; and if the communication isnot available, retrieve the license file from a network storagelocation.

Example 17

The one or more computer readable storage media of Examples 15-16wherein, to determine authentication of the user license based on asource of the license file, the program instructions direct theprocessing system to: determine if the user license is authenticatedbased on a public key of the online licensing service if the sourcelocation comprises the online licensing service; and determine if theuser license is authenticated based on a public key of an entity otherthan the online licensing service hosting the network storage locationif the source location comprises the network storage location.

Example 18

The one or more computer readable storage media of Examples 15-17wherein, to obtain a license file for the application, the programinstructions direct the processing system to: attempt communication withan online licensing service and receive the license file from the onlinelicensing service if the communication is available; and if thecommunication is not available, attempt retrieval of the license filefrom a network storage location and retrieve the license file from thenetwork storage location if the license file is found in the networkstorage location; and if the license file is not found in the networkstorage location, retrieve the license file from a local storagelocation.

Example 19

The one or more computer readable storage media of Examples 15-18wherein, to determine authentication of the user license based on asource of the license file, the program instructions direct theprocessing system to determine if the user license is authenticatedbased on a public key contained in application binaries of theapplication.

Example 20

The one or more computer readable storage media of Examples 15-19wherein the license file further comprises a license data structurecomprising: the user license; a signature; and a public key associatedwith the signature and based on the source location.

The functional block diagrams, operational scenarios and sequences, andflow diagrams provided in the Figures are representative of exemplarysystems, environments, and methodologies for performing novel aspects ofthe disclosure. While, for purposes of simplicity of explanation,methods included herein may be in the form of a functional diagram,operational scenario or sequence, or flow diagram, and may be describedas a series of acts, it is to be understood and appreciated that themethods are not limited by the order of acts, as some acts may, inaccordance therewith, occur in a different order and/or concurrentlywith other acts from that shown and described herein. For example, thoseskilled in the art will understand and appreciate that a method couldalternatively be represented as a series of interrelated states orevents, such as in a state diagram. Moreover, not all acts illustratedin a methodology may be required for a novel implementation.

The descriptions and figures included herein depict specificimplementations to teach those skilled in the art how to make and usethe best option. For the purpose of teaching inventive principles, someconventional aspects have been simplified or omitted. Those skilled inthe art will appreciate variations from these implementations that fallwithin the scope of the invention. Those skilled in the art will alsoappreciate that the features described above can be combined in variousways to form multiple implementations. As a result, the invention is notlimited to the specific implementations described above, but only by theclaims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of operating a licensing service forauthenticating a user license for an application, the method comprising:receiving a license request from a device running the application,wherein the device running the application sends the license request tothe licensing service responsive to a launch of the application; inresponse to receiving the license request, generating a license file,wherein the license file includes a license data structure; generating ahash of the license data structure; sending the hash of the license datastructure to a timestamping authority, wherein the timestampingauthority creates a signed hash of the license data structure;receiving, from the timestamping authority, a trusted timestamp packagecomprising the signed hash of the license data structure; and appendingthe trusted timestamp package to the license file to create a modifiedlicense file.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending themodified license file to the device running the application.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the device running the application isconfigured to determine that the license data structure is signed by thetimestamp authority.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the license filecomprises a user license based on an identity of a user associated withthe launch of the application.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein thelicense file indicates one or more features to be enabled in theapplication based on the identity of the user associated with the launchof the application.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the timestampingauthority, to create the signed hash of the license data structure, addsa timestamp to the hash of the license data structure, calculates anadditional hash, and digitally signs the additional hash with a privatekey associated with the timestamping authority.
 7. The method of claim6, wherein the trusted timestamp package further comprises the timestampand a public key associated with the timestamping authority.
 8. Acomputing apparatus comprising: one or more computer readable storagemedia; a processing system operatively coupled with the one or morecomputer readable storage media; and program instructions stored on theone or more computer readable storage media for operating a licensingservice that, when executed by the processing system, direct theprocessing system to at least: receive a license request from a devicerunning an application, wherein the device running the application sendsthe license request to the licensing service responsive to a launch ofthe application; in response to receiving the license request, generatea license file, wherein the license file includes a license datastructure; generate a hash of the license data structure; send the hashof the license data structure to a timestamping authority, wherein thetimestamping authority creates a signed hash of the license datastructure; receive, from the timestamping authority, a trusted timestamppackage comprising the signed hash of the license data structure; andappend the trusted timestamp package to the license file to create amodified license file.
 9. The computing apparatus of claim 8, whereinthe program instructions, when executed by the processing system,further direct the processing system to send the modified license fileto the device running the application.
 10. The computing apparatus ofclaim 9, wherein the device running the application is configured todetermine that the license data structure is signed by the timestampauthority.
 11. The computing apparatus of claim 8, wherein the licensefile comprises a user license based on an identity of a user associatedwith the launch of the application.
 12. The computing apparatus of claim11, wherein the license file indicates one or more features to beenabled in the application based on the identity of the user associatedwith the launch of the application.
 13. The computing apparatus of claim8, wherein the timestamping authority, to create the signed hash of thelicense data structure, adds a timestamp to the hash of the license datastructure, calculates an additional hash, and digitally signs theadditional hash with a private key associated with the timestampingauthority.
 14. The computing apparatus of claim 13, wherein the trustedtimestamp package further comprises the timestamp and a public keyassociated with the timestamping authority.
 15. One or morecomputer-readable storage media having program instructions storedthereon for operating a licensing service, wherein the programinstructions, when executed by a processing system, direct theprocessing system to at least: receive a license request from a devicerunning an application, wherein the device running the application sendsthe license request to the licensing service responsive to a launch ofthe application; in response to receiving the license request, generatea license file, wherein the license file includes a license datastructure; generate a hash of the license data structure; send the hashof the license data structure to a timestamping authority, wherein thetimestamping authority creates a signed hash of the license datastructure; receive, from the timestamping authority, a trusted timestamppackage comprising the signed hash of the license data structure; andappend the trusted timestamp package to the license file to create amodified license file.
 16. The one or more computer-readable storagemedia of claim 15, wherein the program instructions, when executed bythe processing system, further direct the processing system to send themodified license file to the device running the application.
 17. The oneor more computer-readable storage media of claim 16, wherein the devicerunning the application is configured to determine that the license datastructure is signed by the timestamp authority.
 18. The one or morecomputer-readable storage media of claim 15, wherein the license filecomprises a user license based on an identity of a user associated withthe launch of the application.
 19. The one or more computer-readablestorage media of claim 18, wherein the license file indicates one ormore features to be enabled in the application based on the identity ofthe user associated with the launch of the application.
 20. The one ormore computer-readable storage media of claim 15, wherein thetimestamping authority, to create the signed hash of the license datastructure, adds a timestamp to the hash of the license data structure,calculates an additional hash, and digitally signs the additional hashwith a private key associated with the timestamping authority.